20220922 LOOK TO WHAT IS LASTING
22 September, 2022, Thursday, 25th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Ecclesiastes 1:2-11 © |
Nothing is new and all is vanity
Vanity of vanities, the Preacher says. Vanity of vanities. All is vanity! For all his toil, his toil under the sun, what does man gain by it?
A generation goes, a generation comes, yet the earth stands firm for ever. The sun rises, the sun sets; then to its place it speeds and there it rises. Southward goes the wind, then turns to the north; it turns and turns again; back then to its circling goes the wind. Into the sea all the rivers go, and yet the sea is never filled, and still to their goal the rivers go. All things are wearisome. No man can say that eyes have not had enough of seeing, ears their fill of hearing. What was will be again; what has been done will be done again; and there is nothing new under the sun. Take anything of which it may be said, ‘Look now, this is new.’ Already, long before our time, it existed. Only no memory remains of earlier times, just as in times to come next year itself will not be remembered.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 89(90):3-6,12-14,17 © |
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You turn men back to dust
and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’
To your eyes a thousand years
are like yesterday, come and gone,
no more than a watch in the night.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
You sweep men away like a dream,
like the grass which springs up in the morning.
In the morning it springs up and flowers:
by evening it withers and fades.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever?
Show pity to your servants.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
In the morning, fill us with your love;
we shall exult and rejoice all our days.
Let the favour of the Lord be upon us:
give success to the work of our hands.
O Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to the next.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:18 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Open my eyes, O Lord, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn14:6 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 9:7-9 © |
'John? I beheaded him; so who is this?'
Herod the tetrarch had heard about all that was being done by Jesus; and he was puzzled, because some people were saying that John had risen from the dead, others that Elijah had reappeared, still others that one of the ancient prophets had come back to life. But Herod said, ‘John? I beheaded him. So who is this I hear such reports about?’ And he was anxious to see Jesus.
LOOK TO WHAT IS LASTING
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ECCLESIASTES 1:2-11; LUKE 9:7-9]
Today, we begin reading the Book of Ecclesiastes. If we are not careful in reading this book in perspective, it can lead us to have a very pessimistic and fatalistic view of life. This is because what the Preacher says is so true that we cannot but immediately identify with his sentiments. So we can end up giving up on life because life seems to have no meaning. No matter what we do, what we achieve, what we have, all will come to naught. If that is the case, why work so hard and why seek to build anything at all? They will ultimately be destroyed. All our hard work and toil and labour will be in vain. So we enter into a state of despondency and lose all zeal for life and work.
We can even go to the other extreme of just enjoying life, since life has no meaning; pleasure is what is left. So there are many people whose life is reduced to pleasure, eating, drinking and merry-making. They have no thought of tomorrow because there is no tomorrow. Left with today, they seek to enjoy everything they can, including indulging in immoral activities because once dead, life is no more. So in desperation to seek happiness in life, they get themselves involved in all kinds of adventure, even risky ones to get the most out of life. Yet, at the end of the day, those whose lives are filled with pleasure, entertainment, sex and eating, are they really happy or fulfilled? Isn’t such a life no better than that of an animal?
Hence, it is important to read the teachings of the Preacher in context. Supposedly, the author of this book is King Solomon who was writing in his old age, around the 9th century. Appropriately, this book is placed next to the Song of Solomon. However, the style of writing appears to come much later, perhaps in the 3rd century before Christ. Regardless, the point remains that whoever the author was, he had arrived at the climax of his career and had begun to wonder what life was all about. Like King Solomon, he had all he wanted in life. He had riches, power, wives, glory and a beautiful palace to live in. So he was not lacking in anything. Yet, he was not at peace. He was not happy or fulfilled. This is very true for many people in the world. When they arrive at the height of their career and are now wealthy, powerful and have whatever life can afford, having enjoyed all these, they begin to wonder whether there is more to life than just eating, drinking, sex and entertainment.
Most painful of all is that if we live longer, we will see that all that we have done would be undone. Life just carries on with or without us. This is what the first reading seeks to express. Life is a cycle. History will repeat itself. “A generation goes, a generation comes, yet the earth stands firm forever. The sun rises, the sun sets; then to its place it speeds and there it rises. Southward goes the wind, then turns to the north; it turns and turns again; back then to its circling goes the wind. Into the sea all the rivers go, and yet the sea is never filled, and still to their goal the rivers go. All things are wearisome.” It is an endless repetition. We have seen what happened to those before us, great, wealthy and powerful men. Where are they today? So with us as well! We will go and join our forefathers in time to come.
And the reality is that we never learn. We should not be surprised. We know what history is like. We know that we cannot escape from the same end our forefathers had gone through. “No man can say that eyes have not had enough of seeing, ears their fill of hearing. What was will be again; what has been done will be done again; and there is nothing new under the sun. Take anything of which it may be said, ‘Look now, this is new.’ Already, long before our time, it existed. Only no memory of remains of earlier times, just as in times to come next year itself will not be remembered.” Nothing is new under the sun!
That is why we need to pray for wisdom of heart. The psalmist says, “Make us know the shortness of our life that we may gain wisdom of heart. Lord, relent! Is your anger forever? Show pity to your servants.” Indeed, we need to see life in perspective. Otherwise we will end up disillusioned, like the Preacher, if we just continue with our worldly pursuits, giving so much time and energy and arrive at nothing. We are no happier than one who is less wealthy and powerful than us. This has happened to so many people because we keep listening to the world that says that we will only be happy if we are successful, have more money, a big house, a big car and food and holidays. Are these people really happy and at peace?
Realizing the mistakes of our forefathers, we must therefore avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. We must learn from them so that we can live happy, meaningful and fulfilling lives. Firstly, let us remember that life is short. “You turn men back to dust and say: ‘Go back, sons of men.’ To your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday, come and gone, no more than a watch in the night. You sweep men away like a dream, like the grass which springs up in the morning. In the morning it springs up and flowers: by evening it withers and fades.” For this reason, we must live as fully as possible and not allow time to be wasted away.
Secondly, to be happy presupposes we live a life of integrity, a life of responsibility, according to our conscience. We have King Herod in the gospel. He too was rich and successful. He had power and money but he was also living in guilt and fear, especially after sentencing the prophet, John the Baptist to death. He could not live with his guilt and could not forgive himself for committing such a heinous crime. He might have been able to continue with his adulterous relationship with Herodias but there was no peace. How can a couple truly love when there is no peace in that relationship? They can be together in bed but there is no real joy in love because there is no peace. A guilty person tends to read into every situation even when it has nothing to do with him. That was the case of Herod when he heard about Jesus, thinking it was John the Baptist who came back to life.
Thirdly, happiness is simply to enjoy whatever life can afford, especially spending time with our loved ones and friends in fellowship. Be happy and contented with what we have and make the best of it. Do not be envious of what others have that we do not have. If only we just make full use of what is given to us, we would be happy enough. This is what the psalmist says, “In the morning, fill us with your love; we shall exult and rejoice all our days.” We are to enjoy the little and big pleasures of life, the flowers in the garden, the morning exercise, the simple breakfast and occasionally, a holiday or a big meal and celebration. Such moments are little reprieves for the hard work we do and the stressful life we lead.
Fourthly, happiness and meaning is found in work. The psalmist prays, “Let the favour of the Lord be upon us: give success to the work of our hands.” Life is not all pleasure and enjoyment because they can satisfy the body but not the spirit. We have a soul and we have a mind. We need to feel and think. This is what makes us human. We need to exercise and use our potentials so that we can grow intellectually and mentally. Otherwise, we become demented in no time if we do not use our brains often. God gives us a mind to think and to be creative. So having a balanced life includes finding work that gives us meaning and purpose and can enrich us.
Fifthly, happiness in life comes when we give ourselves to others. If we want to be happy in life, it is not sufficient to take care of ourselves or our work; we need to expand our humanity by reaching out to those who need help. In reaching out to the poor and the suffering, we become more aware of our humanity; and it helps to develop the humanity inside us, drawing out from us our compassion, love and kindness. Knowing that we are capable of feeling with and caring for those who are suffering or deprived makes us more human. As we love them, we feel loved also in return. It is the human touch that keeps us human and not like a robot without feelings.
Finally, happiness ultimately depends on our relationship with God. A man without God, a man without a good prayer life will find that his life has no foundation, no goal and no purpose. That is why faith in God and in eternal life is what gives meaning to our life and brings everything we do on earth together. Faith in God is that thread that sews all things together, giving us a holistic life. This explains why those without God and without faith, in spite of their success, live unfulfilled lives. There is a vacuum and at the end of their life, they leave without hope for tomorrow. Such is the vanity of life without God. It seems this life is futile.
Indeed, if we observe these basic principles of life, then we need not end our life in resentment and disappointment. By living our life to the fullest in enjoyment, love, work and service, we have a foretaste of the life to come. By living a contented life, but not a complacent life, doing what we can, enjoying what is given to us and making ourselves useful to the world, we find that life is not too bad at all, even if this life will come to an end. What is important is not whether what we have achieved would continue but that through our involvement and contributions, we have built ourselves up in maturity in the manhood of Christ. The world is the arena in which we help to build the lasting city of love, peace and joy.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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